BaptistWay Bible Series for August 2: Live in faithfulness to God

There probably is no better, no more concise guide for believers to live the Christian (called the Way early in the history of the Christian church) life than Paul’s instructions for life found in Romans 12.

It is a chapter devoted to the essentials of relationships: our relationship to God, our relationship to the church and our personal relationships with others. It serves not only as a code of conduct for a group of believers who had not yet come to maturity in their new religious expression and needed guidelines for their lives, but its basic message is just as relevant for 21st-century believers, too.

To put this lesson in perspective, look at it in the context of the others to get a feel for where we are. Perhaps the best way to do that is look at the lessons in this six-part unit, “God’s Call on You,” as a series of verbs: Lesson One urged us to hear the good news of Christ; now, this lesson encourages us to live that good news out. Succeeding lessons will challenge us to engage in God’s mission; tell the good news, minister to others’ physical needs; and we’ll wrap up the unit by exploring ways to participate in God’s mission to everyone.

There are a lot of action verbs in these lessons, and it’s no mistake. As believers, God calls us—God calls you—to be active in his mission. Part of that participation in God’s mission is to actively live in faithfulness to God—purposefully, intentionally, keep God and his mission at the forefront of not only our thoughts but our entire being every second of every day. Sounds pretty active, doesn’t it?

Your relationship to God (Romans 12:1-2)

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God-what is good and acceptable and perfect.”  

There’s a lot of theology packed into these two verses. Motivated by God’s mercies on us, we should respond by presenting ourselves to God as:

1.    “Living sacrifices”—Unlike the typical Jewish sacrifice of the time, which consisted of sacrificing animals on the altar of worship, we are to give up our bodies to God as a living sacrifice, symbolic of the new life we experience in Christ. This phrase is rich in meaning and assumes we give our lives totally to God.

2.    “Holy and acceptable”—The term “holy” means “set apart for God” and indicates our complete devotional only to him, while “acceptable” implies we make ourselves sacrifices with the right intentions.

While these verses give us our motivation and goal as Christians, it comes with a warning: The biggest threat to our faith comes from outside influences—“the world”—and we are to turn to constant renewal of our thoughts through prayer and communion with God so that we are resistant to the world and focus instead on the will of God.

Questions to explore

•    How have you been a “living sacrifice” today for God?

•    What are examples of what you think might be acceptable or unacceptable intentions as we present ourselves as sacrifices to God?

Your relationship within the church (Romans 12:3-8)

“For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.”  

With the issue of your relationship to God outlined, Paul turns in the next passage of Scripture to the understanding of what it means to be a member of the body of Christ, the Christian church and the types of strengths, or gifts, that God gives us to fulfill his mission.

In verses 3-5, Paul shares the nature of the church with believers of the new Way and with us by sharing with us our part in the church. All members, according to Paul, are to be similarly minded in our humility and thoughtful in our judgment, and to consider ourselves so unified we are all like part of one body.

But he also tells us we are different, and that difference in our God-entrusted spiritual gifts is what brings the church its strength. Among the gifts he acknowledges are:

1.    Prophecy, the ability to communicate God’s revealed truth

2.    Ministry, the gift of service to others in God’s name

3.    Teaching, to give instruction and spiritual guidance

4.    Exhorting, encouraging others in the body

5.    Giving, the spiritual attitude of generosity in many forms (finances, time, resources)

6.    Leading, or sacrificing of abilities to benefit the Way

7.    Compassion, because those who follow a merciful God must show it ourselves.

Notice Paul doesn’t elevate any of these over any other, acknowledging that each are important to God’s mission.   

Questions to explore

•    Do you feel you have one of the spiritual gifts outlined in this passage? Share among your Bible study class or small group. How many are represented?

•    If you feel you don’t have any of these, how do you feel you can contribute to God’s mission?

Your relationships with others (Romans 12:9-21)

“Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all. If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’  No, ‘if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

With the issue of spiritual gifts and their contributions to the church outlined, Paul then urges us to behave in a certain manner when dealing with others, regardless of their beliefs. It is a moral code that can stand the test of time—it is as relevant for us today as for the early church.

Verse 9 is the starting point for our relationships with others and a moral code for our lives: a basic maxim we can use as a guide in discerning who we’re going to relate to and how: show real love, hate what is evil. Genuine love is basic need of all Christians for carrying out God’s will and gives us the capacity to del with others in whatever situations present themselves. The following exhortations are so straightforward that it is enough to include the passage on its own and not try to add to it.  

Questions to explore

•    Would an observer see all of these traits in you? Which one would be most evident? Which least evident?

•    Can you show God’s love without hating what is evil?

•    What is the hardest of these traits for you to carry out consistently?